The Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are official at $649 and $849

The big phone gets a modern redesign, while the smaller phone hasn’t changed much.

SAN FRANCISCO—Google's second generation flagship smartphone is official. Today, the company announced the 5-inch Google Pixel 2 and 6-inch Google Pixel 2 XL. The specs are pretty much the same as every other 2017 Android phone: both phones have a Snapdragon 835 SoC, 4GB of RAM, and a base 64GB storage option. Both have 12.2MP, single-lens rear cameras with f/18 apertures.

The smaller Pixel has an HD OLED display and comes in three colors—kinda blue, just black, and clearly white. There is no headphone jack. The 2 XL has curved glass and an 18:9 aspect ratio. It comes in two colors—just black, and black and white. Google says both phones have the same features. They're both IP67 water and dust resistant, and they both feature an always-on display that shows the time, the currently playing song, and other information without the need to press anything.

Further Reading

On the front, the design of the two models diverges. The Pixel 2 XL gets a modern redesign with slimmer bezels, rounded screen corners, and a six-inch display. Users that prefer a smaller phone are stuck with an inferior device, since the smaller Pixel 2 didn't get redesigned and looks a lot like the 2016 model. You get a five-inch panel with an old 16:9 aspect ratio, square corners, and much taller bezels.

The various colors offered for the Google Pixel 2 and Google Pixel 2 XL.

The front of the Google Pixel 2.

The back of the Google Pixel 2.

The side of the Google Pixel 2.

The front-facing camera and display of the Google Pixel 2.

The rear camera of the Google Pixel 2.

A view from behind the Google Pixel 2.

The front of the Google Pixel 2 XL.

The back of the Google Pixel 2 XL.

The side of the Google Pixel 2 XL.

The front-facing camera and display of the Google Pixel 2 XL.

The rear camera of the Google Pixel 2.

A view from behind the Google Pixel 2 XL.

Further Reading

On the back, you'll see an evolution of the 2016 Pixel design. The Pixel 2 has a metal body, but the top 20 percent or so of the back has a glass window for easier signal reception. The glass window is smaller than on the 2016 Pixel, so much so that the rear fingerprint reader now lives on the metal body. The reason for the big divergence seems to do with the manufacturers. The Pixel 2 XL is manufactured by LG and looks close to an LG V30 or G6. The Pixel 2 is manufactured by HTC, which has yet to produce a slim-bezel device.

Speaking of HTC, the new Pixels have borrowed the U11's squeezable sides. You can just give the frame of the device a squeeze and the Google Assistant will launch and start listening. This works even when the phone is off. The sound situation is a mixed bag. In the "good" category (and new for 2017), we've got a pair of front-firing stereo speakers. In the "bad" category: the headphone jack is gone.

There's a bit more to the cameras, too. The camera supports motion photos similar to the iPhone's live photos, and also takes portrait mode photos—a blurry background mode—that allows true depth from a single camera. You use do this mode with both the back and front cameras. The phone also employs optical image stabilization. OIS and EIS work at the same time for smooth video.

The new Pixels are also getting a new home screen, with a bottom-aligned Google search bar and a new top widget that shows your next appointment. And since this is the Pixel line, these are the only phones that are currently shipping with the latest version of Android, 8.0 Oreo, and they are the only Android phones that will be updated to each new version of Android on day one. If you're looking to completely sidestep Android's fragmentation mess and always have the latest and greatest Google OS, these are the phones to buy.

The software has always been the focus of the Pixel phones, and this year Google is launching a few new goodies for the Pixel 2. The biggest is probably Google Lens, a visual search feature that uses the phone's camera. With Lens, you can tap on a lens icon, point it at something, and identify things like emails, phone numbers, addresses, books, artwork, and movies. Google already has an app in this category called "Google Goggles." Goggles has definitely been neglected by Google though, so Lens is a successor of sorts. We'll have to see exactly how Lens is more capable than Goggles once we get to try it.

Google also dedicated part of its Pixel 2 presentation to ARCore, it's platform for developing augmented reality applications. The company demoed a feature called AR Stickers, which is currently exclusive to the Pixel 2 phones. It allows you to create scenes with 3D stickers in the space around you. In one example, cartoon Stranger Things characters were arranged and animated on the stage in AR to create a custom story.

At launch, the Pixel 2 phones will be available in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, India, and Canada. The 2 XL will arrive Spain, Italy, and Singapore at a later date. The Pixel 2 starts at $649/£629, the same price as the 2016 model, while the Pixel 2 XL starts at $849/£799, an $80 increase over 2016. Pre-orders start today, and Google says you get a free Google Home Mini with the purchase. Google did not say when the phones will ship.

Ron Amadeo
Ron is the Reviews Editor at Ars Technica, where he specializes in Android OS and Google products. He is always on the hunt for a new gadget and loves to rip things apart to see how they work. Emailron@arstechnica.com//Twitter@RonAmadeo